Weapons
Weapons (or Power-Ups) are the combat components central to the ''Wipeout'' series. Initially used to slow down rival craft, these weapons are now capable of damaging opponents (and even eliminating them). The different types of weapons vary in offensive weapons and defensive weapons. Main Weapons This is a list of weapons used in (nearly all) games in the Wipeout series. Some of these weapons were introduced in the [[Wipeout (video game)|original Wipeout]], whereas the others (such as Auto Pilot) were introduced in later games. *'Missile' (Multi-Missile in Wipeout 3) - A smart missile that can be fired instantly for a ricochet effect, or locked-on for a more accurate shot at the competition. *'Rockets' - Forward-firing projectiles that work effectively at close-range. Depending on game, ships can shoot up to three at a time. In Wipeout 2048, Speed ships fire one Rocket, Agility ships fire two and Fighter ships fire three. *'Plasma' (Plasma Bolt in Wipeout Fusion) - A dark energy weapon that surges across the track, causing heavy damage to anything on its path. It does not lock-on or bounce off walls. *'Quake' (Quake Disruptor in Wipeout Fusion) - A high-power seismic earthquake shockwave weapon that blazes its way down the track with a fierce and explosive momentum. In Wipeout 2048, this weapon is available to Fighter and Agility ships only. *'Mines' - A quintet of floating mines that can be dropped vertically or horizontally. In WipEout Fusion, you can drop a single mine at a time instead of deploying all of them in a single sequence. In Wipeout 2048, Speed and Agility ships carry this weapon instead of Bombs. *'Bomb' (Thunder Bomb in Wipeout 2097; Gravity Bomb in Wipeout Fusion) - A high-grade wide-radius explosive that causes a devastating explosion that can harm nearby opponents. In Wipeout Fusion, it disrupts the anti-gravity generators on all craft within the blast radius. In Wipeout 2048, Fighter ships only use this weapon instead of Mines. *'Turbo' - Activates a temporary boost that can be used to go through the pack, over a jump, or out of harm's way. Can be used, with the right timing, to evade a Quake. In Wipeout 3, this power-up did not appear and it was replaced by a Hyperthrust booster that will consume some shield energy when used. *'Shield' - A protective energy shield that, when activated, makes the ship invulnerable to weapons or collision damage for a brief period. *'Auto Pilot' - Activates a professional simulated pilot for a few seconds. In Wipeout 2048, activating an Autopilot will make your craft go faster and also activate a Shield whilst navigating you through the toughest corners. Other Weapons These weapons appeared only in certain games (and certain game modes): *'Shockwave' (Wipeout; Electro-Bolt in Wipeout 2097; Disruption Bolt in Wipeout Pure) - Shoots a blue beam of electricity that slows the craft. It is a lock-on weapon, so it cannot be shot backwards. The Disruption Bolt in Wipeout Pure does not lock-on or bounce off walls, but getting hit by it will cause nasty effects on your craft, yet it won't damage your shield. Your shield can be damaged when the Disruption Bolt possesses your craft by hitting the walls and/or other craft. *'REVCON' (Wipeout only; Control Jammer in Wipeout Fusion only) - Disrupts the opponent's craft's computer by reversing the controls of the affected craft, making it difficult to control. *'ECM Pod' (Wipeout only) - Disables opponents' weapon system for a brief period, preventing them from picking up weapons and using them. The effect of this power-up was not explained in the instruction manual, and instead referred to as "What's This?" *'Leech Beam' (Energy Drain in Wipeout 3) - A pulsating electronic grapple that drains energy from an opponent's ship and transfers it to the user's ship. You will need to lock-on to the nearest craft first. The beam will stop when you are damaged, the network of the beam is too far or there is no more energy to take. In Wipeout 2048, activating a Leech Beam gives you a shield as well. *'E-Pak' (Wipeout 2097 & Wipeout 64) - Replenishes 1/4 (one-fourth) of your energy. It is only available when your craft has less than 20% of energy remaining. *'Cloak' (Wipeout 3; Stealth in Wipeout Fusion only) - Makes your craft invisible for a brief period, making your craft invincible to most damage and impervious to any lock-on. *'Force Wall' (Wipeout 3) - Activates an energy wall that drains some shield energy of any craft that passes through, and the craft passing through will also be pushed back. *'Reflector' (Wipeout 3) - Reflects weapons away from your craft. While using the Reflector, any weapon that hits your craft will bounce off walls and lock-on weapons will return to the ship that fired it. *'Cannon' (Proton Cannon in Wipeout Fusion) - A 30-round load of proton shells with rapid-fire capability. In Wipeout Fusion, the Proton Cannon uses 25 rounds instead of 30. *'GravStinger' (Wipeout Fusion) - Drops a gravity mine that disables the anti-gravity generator underneath the craft when collided. This causes damage to the affected craft as it grinds on the track itself, and will force the victim's craft to stop and slow down. It is similar to the Gravity Bomb. *'Grenades' (Wipeout Fusion) - Three bouncy projectiles that explode upon impact with the wall or a craft. It is similar to the Rockets, yet the grenades bounce up and down. *'Flamer' (Wipeout Fusion) - A flamethrower that causes continuous damage to a craft for a brief period or until it enters the pit lane. Just like the Proton Cannon, it is an ammunition-based weapon with only 99% of gas for the flamethrower. *'Hunter Missile' (Wipeout Fusion only) - A fierce homing missile that targets the race leader. Firing it will go directly to the leader without locking-on. *'Global Drain' (Wipeout Fusion only) - Causes total shield loss to all the opponents' craft within a wide radius. Opponents (and your craft) are left with 0 shield points, meaning one hit will result in elimination unless they can enter the pit lane. *'Turbo Enforcer' (Wipeout Fusion only) - Works like a standard turbo, but instead on an opponent's craft. Best used in tight sections of track to cause damage and slow down an opponent. The Turbo Enforcer is fired like a missile, and you have to gain a lock first. When the projectile hits the enemy craft, they will gain a speed boost. *'Shuriken' (Wipeout Pulse only) - A razor-sharp projectile that bounces off walls and ships for a small period of time. *'Repulsor' (Wipeout Pulse only) - Causes nearby enemy ships to veer off course and sustain damage. Good for racking up eliminations. Super Weapons Super weapons were first introduced in Wipeout 64 and reappeared in Wipeout Fusion. These are a range of team-specific super weapons that cause much more damage than the main weapons. In Wipeout Fusion, a Super Weapon Licence is needed to used these weapons. (NOTE: Some of the super weapons in Wipeout 64 were reused in later games) ''Wipeout 64'' Mini-Gun (FEISAR) - Simply press B to start this super weapon, and it will continuously fire shells for 10 seconds. Most of the time it will take about only one second of continuous fire from this weapon to eliminate an opponent. Use of the Cyclone in the game will make one round eliminate one opponent. This weapon evolved into the Cannon. Shield Raider (AG Systems) - Easily the most powerful weapon in the game. It is fired like a missile, and you have to gain a lock on the nearest craft to fire it. If an opponent craft is hit by this green projectile, its shields will be completely drained, with only 1% of energy remaining. This means just a small hit, even from the wall, can cause an elimination. Very dangerous. Also, you gain a small amount of shield. This weapon evolved into the Leech Beam. Energy Sphere (Auricom) - Although not the most powerful in the game, it can be fun to use. As this is a charging weapon, hold down B to charge up the sphere to get maximum charge (identified by a sound). As the sphere charges, it becomes more powerful. A direct hit would often cause an elimination, although this is difficult as the weapon has no lock-on feature. However, the sphere can pass through opponents, allowing for multiple hits. This weapon is similar to the Plasma. Power Snare (Qirex) - In contrast to the other super weapons in the game, this super weapon could be considered the weakest weapon in the game. When activated, the craft deploys a yellow wall several metres in front of you. Any craft that travels through this wall will lose much shield energy. This weapon was reused in Wipeout 3 as the Force Wall. Stealth (Piranha) - This super weapon is much more defensive than offensive, but still very useful. When activated, the craft becomes partially invisible and also immune against physical damage and weapons systems. Opponents can also be damaged by driving through them. This weapon was reused in Wipeout 3 as the Cloak. ''Wipeout Fusion'' Bio-Snare (G-Tech) - Harnessing aggressive bio-technology originally developed for sewage treatment, G-Tech's Bio-Snare super weapon fires a biological projectile forward down the track. On landing, it grows into an obstructive entity that will consume opponents' craft that fly into it and disrupt the controls of that craft. Craft that hit the Bio-Snare can only get rid of it by entering the pit lane and recharging their shields. Nitro Rocket (Tigron) - True to form, Tigron's new super weapon promises devastating results. After gaining a lock-on an opponent craft ahead, a liquid nitrogen projectile freezes and crystallises the craft for several seconds. Impact with a wall, weapon or another craft during this period will destroy it. The crystallised state can, however, be reversed by environmental heat (for a few seconds) or by passing through the pit lane. Orbital Laser (Auricom) - Auricom had to launch a huge offensive laser system in order to complete the development of this vicious weapon. At the very least, it demonstrates their determination to do well this season. Pilots lock onto an opponent craft using a laser sight, then when activated, the craft's co-ordinates are transmitted to Auricom's laser satellite. Piercing energy bolts are fired from the airborne system, causing major damage. However, this weapon has no effect in underground zones as satellite communication is disabled underground. Penetrator (Piranha) - Another incredible innovation from Aries Piermont-inspired team, the Penetrator turns the firing craft into an actual missile. Once the pilot locks onto an opponent craft, his/her own craft arms its nose area and it literally fires itself at the opponent. Major damage is caused. If no lock-on is gained, the craft will fire itself in the direction of aim. Upon firing, while homing into the nearest craft, the craft will activate a fast autopilot. This will also cause damage to your craft as you are hitting a craft with physical damage. Power Swarm (EG-R) - EG-R's new Power Swarm weapon has thrilled race enthusiasts across the world. Spurning brute force in favour of tiny swarming drone weapons, pilots lock onto opponent craft either in front or behind. The drones are fired from an isolation unit beneath the craft from which they swarm round the opponent, firing tiny rapid-fire weapons until all their ammo is used up. The drones can go away when you use a shield, go to the pit lane or wait for a few seconds (although you might suffer from the drones). Seismic Field (Van-Über) - The Van-Über weapon research facility in Dresden has excelled itself with the new seismic field, that was unveiled at the Zero-G trade fair earlier this year. When fired, a highly destructive black hole is hurled forward down the track. Direct hits will cause severe damage, and fans will be pleased to know that an elimination is highly likely. When the black hole is fired, it will make the sky black. It does not lock-on or bounce off walls. Shield Drain (Xios) - A favourite of Natasha Belmondo, the Shield Drain literally drains the life from the opponents. Once the pilot locks onto an opponent craft, a link is formed between both craft and shield energy is sucked from it until there is nothing left to take, or until the distance between the two becomes too far, breaking the link. It is very similar to the Leech Beam. Super Missile (FEISAR) - FEISAR's new Super Missiles have been customised from the standard missile system by their in-house weapon development team in rural area of Sicily. The missiles are vastly stronger than standard missiles since this is a super weapon. Three targeted missiles are released at once, locking onto the three nearest opponent craft. If there is only one opponent ahead, all three missiles will lock onto it, and the chances are it will be destroyed. It is very similar to the Multi-Missile in Wipeout 3. (NOTE: A development of this weapon might have been the cause of the 2164 Temtesh Bay Disaster) Gallery File:Wipeout-icons_horiz_final-01.jpg|Diagram of Weapon evolution throughout the series Video